A small announcement in the newspaper -- Mannerheim's bunker to open for visitors. Of course I had to go...
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August 2017, Tamminiemi, Helsinki, Finland
Caving (Man-Made); Urban-Exploration (Bunkers)
Janne and I are on a trip through California (and few other states). We dropped by the Crystal Cave at the Sequoia National Park.
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July 2017, Crystal Cave, Sequoia National Park, California, USA
Caving (Rock, Rock-Marble, Morphology-Karst, Basic, Showtour)
I had an opportunity for a brief visit to the Bozkovské Dolomitové Jeskynĕ or the Bozkov Dolomite caves. The cave system is 1060 meters long and hosts the largest underground lake in Czech Republic.
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July 2017, Bozkov Dolomit Caves, Bozkov, Czech Republic
Caving (Rock, Rock-Limestone, Morphology-Karst, Basic, Showtour)
Cool. Got a certificate in the mail from the caving course earlier in the summer :-) and clearly they were focused on things that needed improvement on my side, like responsibility and safety.
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July 2017, House Arkko, Kauniainen, Finland
Caving (None)
This is the world's oldest and biggest hotel room. And it is 64 meters underground, in a cave in Arizona. Sadly, we did not have money to for the night (850 USD) but we did get a tour.
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(Suomenkielinen versio)
July 2017, Grand Canyon Caverns, Arizona, USA
Caving (Rock, Rock-Limestone, Morphology-Karst, Basic, Showtour)
I was searching for a place to visit this Sunday... with pretty much the only requirement being that a teenager would be interested in going. We ended up going to Kasaberget in Kirkkonummi.
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June 2017, Abandoned warehouses, Strömsby, Kirkkonummi, Finland; Kasabergetin luola, Strömsby, Kirkkonummi, Finland
Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Crack, Basic, Surveying); Urban-Exploration (Buildings, Ruins); History
This is an exceptional opportunity that only opens once a year. Janne and I are crawling in the cave, guided by friendly cavers from the Swedish Speleological Association. We get to see amazing things, from stalactites to "Inre Sjön", a small lake (or rather, a pool) a kilometer into the cave.
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(TGR version)
(Suomenkielinen versio)
June 2017, Lummelunda, Gotland, Sweden; Kanalen, Lummelunda, Gotland, Sweden; Bryet, Lummelunda, Gotland, Sweden; Galgbergsgrottan, Visby, Gotland, Sweden
Caving (Rock, Rock-Limestone, Morphology-Karst, Basic, Swimming, Boating); Caving (Rock, Rock-Limestone, Morphology-Karst, Basic, Digging); Caving (Rock, Rock-Limestone, Morphology-Karst, Basic); Swimming (Indoor, Underground, Water, Waterbody-Cave)
Can you drive by something for 20 years, and not be aware of the wonders just few meters from the road? You can. I had not heard about the Bemböle watermill ruins.
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June 2017, Bembölen vanha mylly, Espoo, Finland
Urban-Exploration (Ruins); Caving (Man-Made)
The Finnish Speleological Association arranged a basic caving course in Turku in June. The course started from the basics, like crawling. A slide to teach crawling! And walking, for that we had another slide.
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June 2017, Luolavuoren luola, Turku, Finland; Ispoisten ranta, Turku, Finland
Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Crack, Basic, Training); Swimming (Outdoor)
... and we started from the basics, like crawling.
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June 2017, Cumulus Hotel, Turku, Finland
Caving (None)
It is a bad sign if you get a frequent customer card from the local military surplus store. Or the "Frequent Pig" card as they call it.
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June 2017, Varusteleka, Helsinki, Finland
Caving (Equipment)
Earlier this week I took some of my colleagues to see the interesting Högberget cave, near our office. I also took some measurements, and drew a map.
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June 2017, Högberget, Kirkkonummi, Finland
Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Erosion, Basic, Surveying)
I was looking for a quick, interesting exploration for Saturday morning, and finally drove up to Kalkkikallio caves (Limestone Hill caves) in Vantaa. Kalkkikallio is a rock hill area on the other side of the Ring III road from the IKEA store. The hill is next to a secluded, quiet area of houses.
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June 2017, Kalkkikallion ketunluola, Vantaa, Finland; Kalkkikallion matalan katon luola, Vantaa, Finland; Kalkkikallion nuotiopaikan luola, Vantaa, Finland
Caving (Rock, Rock-Limestone, Morphology-Karst, Basic, Surveying); Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Boulders, Basic, Surveying)
This is how we do picnic in Finland. Rain, hail, cold, jackets, sulking under what cover we might find.
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June 2017, Vallisaaren niityn bunkkeri, Helsinki, Finland
Other; Caving (Man-Made)
I am making turns on a fresh norwegian moss, when I see something strange. A dramatic outgrowth of moss on a rock? No, it was art wrapping! The Woven Stone by Lise Wulff, a norwegian ecoartist. And a cave underneath!
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May 2017, Woven Stone, Hemsedal, Norway
Skiing (Outdoor, Snow, Lifts); Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Boulders, Basic)
Yesterday we went to the Solamäki caves (Solamäen luolat) in Siuntio. We found a crack system, with a large cave hall by Finnish standards, and many interesting small cracks.
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(Suomenkielinen versio)
May 2017, Solamäen luola, Siuntio, Finland; Solamäen luolan halkeamasivuluola, Siuntio, Finland; Solamäen kivenalusluola, Siuntio, Finland; Solamäen lippaluolanen, Siuntio, Finland
Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Crack, Basic, Surveying); Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Morphology-Boulders, Basic, Surveying); Caving (Rock, Rock-Granite, Basic, Surveying)